La Mirada High School has been here before. Three times since 1990, the Matadores have advanced to the CIF-Southern Section boys basketball semifinals only to be heartbroken. They get another chance Tuesday when they travel to Compton for a Division 2A semifinal at 7 p.

FULLERTON >> California High School enjoyed one of the better seasons in area boys soccer history this winter. But that meant little on Friday. Miguel Tapia and Nick Vasquez had second-half goals and No.

CHICAGO — Goalkeeper Kasey Keller and forward Tiffeny Milbrett are among 13 players on the ballot for the first time for the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame. Goalkeepers Pat Onstad, Eddie Robinson and Zach Thornton; defenders Gregg Berhalter, Jimmy Conrad and Frankie Hejduk; and forwards Jovan Kirovski and Diego Serna are the other men on the ballot for the first time, the Hall said Thursday.

LA CRESCENTA >> La Mirada High School, with no seniors, is one of the youngest girls soccer teams in the CIF Southern Section. But there’s no doubting the Matadores’ talent, which was again put on full display Tuesday.

PASADENA — Katy Coats had a clear shot at goal in a tie game with seven minutes to play. Until Maranatha High School teammate Ivahnna Espinoza got in the way. The sophomore soccer player’s shot, in a CIF-Southern Section Division 6 second-round game against visiting South El Monte, rebounded off Espinoza and the Minutemen were eventually called for offsides.

Two decades ago, when Denver billionaire Philip Anshutz was looking for land to build a stadium for his MLS team, he took to the Southern California skies in a helicopter in search of a big enough patch of vacant real estate.

Sonora High School’s quest to make up for a loss in the last season’s CIF-Southern Section boys basketball finals will take them to Pasadena on Tuesday. The Raiders, after easy wins in the first two rounds, face the Bulldogs in a Division 3AA quarterfinal at 7 p.

WHITTIER >> La Serna High School was a surprise first-round loser in the CIF-Southern Section girls soccer playoffs last season. The Lancers made sure not to repeat that result. Michelle Reed scored two goals and had two assists as No.

La Mirada and La Serna have been the top two girls soccer programs in the area in recent years, and both could add to their success in the coming weeks. Both received top four seeds in their respective divisions when the CIF-Southern Section released playoff pairings on Monday.

There were no area teams to receive a top four seed when the CIF-Southern Section released its playoff pairings for boys soccer on Monday. The area’s best, California, which is 20-0, just missed out, and will host Palm Springs (12-10-2) in the first round of the Division 2 bracket on Friday.

Former Galaxy defender and GM Alexi Lalas makes his UEFA Champions League debut as a Fox soccer analyst Tuesday as the knockout stage of what’s widely regarded as the world’s best club tournament kicks off.

NEW YORK — ESPN and Univision responded angrily Friday after FIFA awarded U.S. broadcast rights to the 2026 World Cup to Fox and NBC’s Telemundo without open bidding. ESPN broadcast six straight World Cups from 1994 through last year, but in 2011 was outbid by Fox, which agreed to pay about $425 million for the 2018 tournament in Russia and the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

Alex Morgan is back. The American forward scored in the 25th minute in her second start since returning from an ankle injury, and the U.S. women defeated England 1-0 on Friday night in an exhibition game.

MONTEBELLO — With the Almont League boys soccer title already decided, there was still a lot at stake in the last game of the season at Schurr High School on Thursday afternoon. The host Spartans needed a win to secure second place and possible first-round home game in the upcoming CIF-Southern Section playoffs.

For a school that has been around for more than 50 years, it is hard to imagine that Charter Oak High School has never been to the CIF-Southern Section boys soccer playoffs. But this season’s team will change that next week.

The CIF-Southern Section High School playoff pairings for boys and girls basketball, soccer and boys water polo will be released Sunday on the CIF website. The girls water polo pairings will be released at 9 a.

PASADENA >> Maranatha High School wasted an opportunity to win the Olympic League girls soccer title last season. The Minutemen made sure Tuesday it wouldn’t happen again. Alexis Phillips scored in the 52nd minute and Maranatha secured the league championship with a 1-0 victory over visiting Whittier Christian.

It is playoff soccer one week early. When Duarte and Sierra Vista meet for the Montview League girls championship on Thursday, a CIF-Southern Section playoff atmosphere is expected. “One thing I told my coaching staff and the girls is that this will be a CIF-type of environment game,” Sierra Vista coach Steve Jimenez said.

Carson >> Michael Bradley scored on a corner kick, of all things. Clint Dempsey finished in his familiar fashion. That’s 203 games of U.S. soccer international experience right there, but a glimpse of the future never hurts.

LORIENT, France >> France scored twice early in the second half to defeat the U.S. women’s national team 2-0 Sunday in a tuneup game for the World Cup. Goals by Eugenie Le Sommer and Jessica Houara came within a minute of each other against U.

Atletico Madrid routed city rival Real Madrid 4-0 rout to rekindle hopes of defending the Spanish league title Saturday, while the leaders in England, Germany and Italy all stayed on course. Chelsea extended its lead in the Premier League by winning as Manchester City continued to falter.

The confidence that Morgan Brian exudes on the field belies her unpretentiousness off it. Brian is the youngest player on the U.S. national team and a rising star expected to earn a roster spot for the Women’s World Cup in June.

The players on the Pasadena High School’s boys soccer team have a knack for yelling at each other. That’s typically not a very good sign of how a season is going. But if the Bulldogs defeat or tie visiting Arcadia on Friday afternoon, Pasadena will be the Pacific League champion.

MONTEBELLO >> Schurr High began Thursday tied for second in the Almont League boys soccer race with Bell Gardens, and the Spartans ended the day in the same position. Alex Castellanos denied Brandon Solares on a penalty kick in the 76th minute and Schurr had to settle for a 0-0 tie with Bell Gardens in league home game.

La Puente >> The Cathedral High boys soccer team took over first place in the Del Rey League with a 3-0 victory over Bishop Amat at Keifer Memorial Stadium on Wednesday afternoon. In the first meeting, the top two teams in the league rankings tied 4-4, but the Phantom defense stepped up in the second meeting, shutting out the Lancers for its 12th shutout this year.

ALHAMBRA >> Vivian Viramontes made sure the Almont League girls soccer race will have an interesting finish. The junior scored both goals to carry Alhambra High School to a 2-0 victory over visiting Schurr in a key league game on Tuesday afternoon at Moor Field.

CARSON >> The first home game of the year for the U.S. men’s national team is customarily a low-profile affair with young hopefuls emerging from what’s essentially a preseason fitness camp aiming to make a mark before returning to their MLS clubs.

A look at the first round of Almont League play would lead to the conclusion that the Schurr High School girls soccer team is having a cakewalk. The Spartans (12-2-3) are off to a 4-0-1 start and lead the league by three points.

Mark Gonzalez scored in the 66th and 75 minutes, rallying Chile to a 3-2 exhibition win over the United States on Wednesday night that sent the Americans to their first five-game winless streak since 2007.

Neymar scored twice, and Barcelona won 3-2 at Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night to reach the Copa del Rey semifinals on 4-2 aggregate. Barcelona will play Villarreal or Getafe, who play Thursday following the Yellow Submarine’s 1-0 win in the first leg.

WHITTIER >> California and La Serna high schools had been throwing style points at each other most of the girls soccer season in hopes of impressing one another. The visiting Lancers did more of the same on Tuesday.

ZURICH — Three second-tier World Cup sponsors opting not to renew for the 2018 tournament in Russia was normal in sports business, FIFA insisted on Friday. Castrol, Continental and Johnson & Johnson all let their World Cup commercial deals expire in December amid widespread allegations of corruption implicating FIFA executive committee members.